Anrich Nortje, Delhi Capitals pacer believes one cannot underestimate any of the franchises in the IPL. The South African added that every team is capable of producing a match-winning performance ahead of his side’s upcoming encounter against the Punjab Kings.
Anrich Nortje missed his side’s first two games of the season, but he should be available for tonight’s encounter against the Punjab outfit.
Anrich Nortje: None Has Got A Bad Team And Every Side Is Competitive
Speaking about his next opponents, the 27-year-old said the Delhi Capitals could not afford to take any team lightly in the competition.
“There’s no team that’s got a bad team, so every side is really competitive, and it can come off for anyone on any day. We are definitely not going to underestimate anyone, and hopefully, we can bring our A-game (against Punjab Kings).” the South African bowler said in a chat with DC’s social media team.
Speaking about his quarantine experience, Anrich Nortje was relieved that it finally came to an end. The fast bowler could have been available for DC’s second game of IPL season.
However, Anrich Nortje had initially tested positive for COVID-19. Later, it was discovered that the test gave a false positive report, and the bowler was finally allowed to join DC’s training camp.
“Ten days in the room was quite a lot for me. It was nice to get out, run around and bowl a bit. I really enjoyed it, and hopefully, I can build it up from here on,” said Nortje.
Anrich Nortje, the bowler of the fastest ball in IPL history, is back in the Capitals’ team bubble after a Covid-19 scare. Anrich Nortje had landed in Mumbai on April 6, and had to spend extended time in quarantine after a positive test, but has subsequently tested negative thrice.
Anrich Nortje: Delhi Have A Great Combination Of Players Besides Lot Of Options In Bowling Lineup
Anrich Nortje was asked about the makeup of DC’s squad for this IPL season and the South African suggested that the bowling line-up was one of DC’s key strengths.
“We are unfortunately missing Shreyas (Iyer), but we definitely have a great combination of players. We have got a great bowling line-up as well. It’s just about picking the right team on the right wicket and conditions.
“We definitely have a lot of options in our bowling line-up, which is really nice to have and hopefully, we can make the best of the conditions and the different players that we have got.” Nortje said.
DC has used Chris Woakes and Tom Curran as their two overseas bowling options in their first two games. While Chris Woakes has done well with the new ball, getting early breakthroughs, Tom Curran has been expensive, conceding runs at an economy of 9.55 and 10 in the opening two games. Hence, Anrich Nortje could replace Tom Curran for DC’s next match against the Punjab Kings today.
The South African duo of Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje is key pacers of Delhi Capitals and were mighty impressive as they picked up 52 wickets between them in the UAE in 2020. Kagiso Rabada picked most scalps as he was a purple cap holder with 30 scalps.
The Capitals have also roped in Shams Mulani as a temporary replacement for Axar Patel, a like-for-like left-arm-spinning allrounder, and brought in Aniruddha Joshi for the injured Shreyas Iyer. It remains to be seen whether either of them can be fitted into the XIs.
Delhi Capitals: 1 Prithvi Shaw, 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 Ajinkya Rahane, 4 Rishabh Pant (capt, wk), 5 Marcus Stoinis, 6 Shimron Hetmyer, 7 Lalit Yadav, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Kagiso Rabada, 10 Avesh Khan, 11 Anrich Nortje
Punjab Kings: 1 Mayank Agarwal, 2 KL Rahul (capt, wk), 3 Chris Gayle, 4 Deepak Hooda, 5 Nicholas Pooran, 6 Shahrukh Khan, 7 Jhye Richardson, 8 M Ashwin, 9 Mohammed Shami, 10 Riley Meredith, 11 Arshdeep Singh